Wire milk crate



Jan. 17, 1961 c- STODDARD WIRE MILK CRATE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 26, 1958 INVENTOR c/u/a swam/20 ATTORNEYS Jan. 17, 1961 c. STODDARD 2,968,418

WIRE MILK CRATE Filed May as, 1958 2 Sheeis-Sheet z INVENTOR CRAIG STODDARD Kara/(duh ATTORNEYS United States Patent WIRE MILK CRATE Craig Stoddard, 2030 Elmwood Ave., Wilmette, 1]].

Filed May 26, 1958, Ser. No. 737,764 2 Claims. 01. 220-19) This invention is a wire case or crate designed particularly for use in the dairy industry to facilitate the transportation and distribution of milk packaged in paper cartons.

The present widespread use of paper cartons by dairies for'use in distributing milk to stores and residences is hampered by thelack of adequate and proper handling crates, having in mind the fragile nature of the cartons in which the milk is packaged. The dairies suffer appreciable loss due to puncturing of the paper cartons or to the rupture of the paraffin coatings which are employed for rendering the cartons liquid proof. If a package is punctured an immediate loss of milk occurs, whereas if the waterproof coating on the carton is cracked or broken, a slow leak develops which not only causes gradual loss of the contents of the package but the resulting dripping of the contents from the package results in in-' convenience to both the storekeeper and the housewife.

With these facts in mind the present invention has for its broad object the provision of a'wire crate or case which is light" i'n weight but rugged in construction and provides adequate protection for the milk packages which may be deposited therein.

Another object of the invention is to provide a crate or case of the character described which is simple in construction, comprises a minimum number of component parts, and is economical to manufacture by reason of the ease with which the parts may be jigged" for welding.

Another object of the invention is to provide in a case of the character described means for mounting the bottom of the case in a manner which will insure appreciable resiliency and thus avoid damaging shocks being transmitted to the milk cartons and resulting fracture of the liquid-proof lining on said containers.

Another object of the invention is to provide means for attaching the wire components of the crate or case to one another as by welding, in a manner which will avoid the formation of projections which tend to create puncture hazards to the paper containers during placement and removal of the same with respect to the case.

Another object of the invention is to provide a case of the character described wherein certain component wires of the case are provided with lateral deformations serving'as bumpers or guards to protect the case and contents from injury during transportation, particularly on plant conveyors.

Another object of the invention is toprovide a case of the character described with adequate stacking facilities so as to insure against substantial lateral displacement of superposed crates when stacked.

Another object of the invention is to provide a wire milk bottle crate having stacking facilities so that it may function as either a top stacking crate or as a bottom stacking crate and which may be readily modified at any time to render the crate suitable for bottom stacking only.

Another object of the invention is to provide a wire ice milk bottle crate having reinforcing corner pieces which define the overall height of the crate and at the same time materially strengthen the crate. These corner pieces may be fashioned to provide in part, the dual stacking facilities above referred to.

These and other objects of the invention will become apparent from reading the following specification in the light of the accompanying drawings wherein I have illustrated a preferred embodiment of the invention and wherein Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the crate,

' Fig. 2 is a fragmental detail partly in section showing the arrangement of superposed crates when stacked,

Fig. 3 is a fragmental sectional view taken on the line 33 of Fig. 1,

Fig. 4 is a fragmental perspective view partly in section showing a bottom rod of the crate,

Fig. 5 is a fragmental perspective view of a reinforced crate corner,

Fig. 6 is a cross sectional detail view taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 5,

Fig. 7 is a fragmental detailed view showing the corner of a crate having the upper stacking lug removed,

Fig. 8 is a fragmental detail view of a crate with a modified form of vertical side wire.

Fig. 9 is a detailed view partly in section taken on the line 99 of Fig. 8, and

Fig. 10 is a detail sectional view showing a modified form of joint between the vertical side wire shown in Fig. 8 and the upper frame of the crate.

' Referring more particularly to the drawings, the case or crateof the present invention includes sides and bottom members made of wire or similar rod-like elements. The side members of the case include upper and lower perimetric frame members 1 and 2 together with intermediate perimetric frame members such as 3 and 4. The upper and lower frame members 1 and 2 are connected by generally vertically disposed rod-like members 5, which are disposed inside of the frame members 2, 3 and 4. The upper extremities of the rods 5 are outwardly flared as at 6, as more clearly shown in Fig. 2. Preferably, the upper surfaces of the outwardly flared portions 6 are contoured at 7 to conform snugly to the outer surface of the upper perimetric frame member 1. This increases the area of contact between the rods 5 and the frame 1, and insures a stronger Weld between these members. Preferably, the outer surfaces of the frame members 1, 2, 3 and 4 are disposed in a common substantially vertical plane generally tangent thereto and as shown the extreme end portions 8 of the rods 5 lie within or inwardly of this plane.

The lower ends of the rod members 5 are bent inwardly and downwardly as clearly shown in Fig. 2, and the terminal portions 9 thereof are engaged with and secured to a stacking ring 10, the transverse dimensions of which are less than the corresponding transverse dimensions of the upper perimetric ring member 1 whereby to permit nesting during stacking as shown. The lower terminal portions 9 of the rods 5 are contoured to snugly fit and conform to the contacting surfaces of the lower frame member 2 and the stacking ring 10 as shown to increase the contact area and the strength of the welds at these points. It should be noted that the inturned lower portions 9 of the rods 5 pass through the lower perimetric frame 2 and through the stacking ring 10 thus leaving the under surfaces of the perimetric frame member 2 and the stacking ring 10 smooth and unobstructed while at the same time placing the stacking ring an appreciable distance below the lower perimetric frame member 2. This disposition of the stacking ring increases the permissible extent of nesting to facilitate stacking and insures against substantial lateral displacement of the superposed crates during trans portation.

As previously indicated, one of the objects of the invention is to provide means for mounting the bottom of the case in a manner to insure adequate resiliency in the support of articles deposited in the case. To this end the bottom of the case comprises bottom-supporting rods 11 which rest on and are secured by welding to opposite side portions 12 of the stacking frame 10. The bottom-supporting rods 11 may be employed in any desired number depending upon the weight to be supported thereby and the degree of resiliency desired, and in the present case, three such supporting rods are shown, although it will be understood that this number may be modified as desired. The bottom-supporting rods 11 are arranged to support transverse rod members 13 which are arranged in spaced relation throughout the length of the bottom-supporting rods 11. The transverse rods 13 are connected by welding to the bottom-supporting rods 11 at the points of intersection therewith and said transverse rods 13 provide means for supporting the upper or carton-contacting surface of the bottom-member, which in the present instance, is comprised of a plurality of flat-topped rods 14. The fiat-topped rods 14 are supported in spaced relation on said bottom-supporting rods 11 in general parallel relation to the bottom-supporting rods 11. The flat-topped rods 14 are provided on their under surface with a longitudinallyextending reinforcing rib 15 which additionally functions to facilitate the attachment of the fiat-topped rods 14 to the transverse rods 13 by welding. The rods 14 are generally T-shaped in transverse cross section as shown in Fig. 4. g

It will be noted'in respect to the construction ofv the" bottom of the case that the bottom-supporting rods 11 are the sole support thereof. and that these. rods} are connelc ted at their ends to opposite endportions 12 pf the;

stacking ring 10 as described. Thus these rods" 11 are unsupported substantially throughout the major portion of their length. Also, it should be noted that the transverse rods 13 are mounted upon and are secured to the unsupported portions of the rods 11 and are disposed transversely thereof. The terminal portions 16 of the rods 13 are free of attachment to any other component of the crate. Similarly, the flat-topped bottom rods 14 are secured to the rods 13 but the terminal portions 17 of the rods 14 are free of attachment toany other component of the crate. Thus the entire bottom member of 'the case which supports the contents thereof, is free to partake of limited resilient up and down movement due toflexure of the bottom-supporting rods 11. This insures adequate protection of the contents of the crate against injurious shock in transit or in handling.

The vertical, rod-like members are fashioned to provide bumper or guard portions to protect the crate and its contents from injury during transportation and particularly while traveling on plant conveyors and to this end the rod members 5 are provided with laterally and outwardly offset portions 18 in that portion of the rods which lie immediately above the lower perimetric frame member 2. As shown in Fig. 2, the lateral and outwardly deformed portions 18 of therods 5 are disposed so that the outer surfaces 19 thereof lie substantially flush with or coplanar with the outer surfaces of the perimetric frame members 1, 2, 3 and 4. This provides adequate lateral extension of the bumpers or guard portions 18 of the crate and by disposing said portions as shown with respect to the lower perimetric ring member 2, adequate protection against injury of the crate "contents from adjacent cases is provided. Also it should be noted that the plane of the upper or carton engaging surface o frthe bottom of the case, as defined by the flat-topped rods 14 coincides substantially with the lower extent of thev outwardly fiared portions 18 of the rods 5, thus providing against injury to thelower. edges of milk cartons deposited within the crate due to frictional contact with the side walls of the crate at the juncture thereof with the sup porting surface of the bottom of the crate. This arrangement avoids crushing or deforming the bottom edge of the milk cartons which is the region in which they most frequently develop leaks due to injurious contact with the crate.

In respect to the stacking ring" 10 and its attachment in downwardly spaced relation to the crate bottom, it should be noted that at each corner of the crate the rods or wires 5' adjacent to the respective corners, in each instance terminate generally at the lower perimetric frame member 2. Thus the lower terminal portions of the rods 5 are attached to said frame at 20 but do not extend into engagement with the stacking ring 10. This arrangement provides adequate clear space at the bottom corners of the case in the region of the stacking ring to receive the corner portions 21 of the upper perimetric frame member 1 of a crate with which the stacking ring 10 of superposed case is associated, when in stacked relation.

The upper perimetric frame member 1 may be provided with depressed handle portions 22 at the opposite sides thereof to facilitate grasping the case by an operator and in each instance, these handle portions 22 may be provided with upwardly-offset, centrally-disposed portions 23 which serve for the engagement of a drag hook when it is desired to pull or drag a case or stack of cases across the floor of a plant or truck, in a well-known manner.

It should be noted that the crate of the present invention is designed to reduce to a minimum the possibility ofinjury or puncture of a carton being placed therein or being withdrawn therefrom and to this end the upper terminal portions 6 of the rod members 5 lie substantially within the downwardly projected outline of those portions ofthe upper. frame member 1 towhich they are secured, and the inner surfaces of the, raa mem ers .5 .aboW-t e-flared portions 18 are dispfised'inp'oplanar. relafiori witlirespect to seen other arid substantially so with respect'l 'to the inner surfaces of the upper perimetric frame member 1. This arrangement eliminates entirely the possibility of puncturing filled cartons when being placed in or being withdrawn from the case due to contact of the cartons with projecting points or rough portions of the case components.

As previously suggested the crate of the present invention may include provisions for dual stacking, that is, it

may be designed for both top stacking and for bottom.

stacking by means which functions simultaneously as a reinforcement for the crate corners andas means forde fining the verticalheight of the crate. Thus I have shown in Fig. 5 a modification of the form of the crate shown in Figs. 1 to 3 inclusive. The modified crate of Fig. 5 includes a reinforcing corner strip 24 in each corner of the crate. The strip 24 may be of sheet metal or angle bar stock of proper gauge, such as steel, and is generally L-shaped in cross section as shown in Fig. 6. This materially stiffens the strip and gives added strength to the crate. Near opposite ends of the strip 24 there are provided inwardly ofiset tongue portions 25 and 26 which form shoulders. These shoulders are preferably curved to conform to the curved surfaces of the upper and lower frame members 1 and 2 respectively. As shown the corner strips 24 are positioned between the frame mem: bers 1 and 2 with said frames seating upon the shoulders 25 and 26 and are welded to the frames in this position. It will be understood that the inwardly bent tongue por-v tions'25 and 26 thus provide shoulders for receiving the upper and lower frame members, and the shoulders, being properly spaced longitudinally of the strips 24 thus determine the vertical height of the crate. This feature greatly facilitates jigging and welding of the component parts. of the crate. V v I The invention contemplates utilizing the corner strips 24 means for providing top stacking facilities for the crate and to this end the top tongue 25 of each corner strip is provided with an upwardly directed lug or extension 27 dimensioned to extend above the plane of the upper frame 1 an appreciable distance. The lugs 27 a'tthe several corners of the crate are positioned so that they may engage inside of the bottom frame 2 of another similar crate when the crates are stacked. The upper extremities of the lugs 27 may be rounded as shown at 28 to facilitate entry of the lugs within the bottom frame 2 of the upper crate. The relation of the crates when so stacked is shown in Fig. 5.

It should be noted that the bottom of the top crate shown in Fig. has a bottom stacking ring structure such as provided on the crate shown in Figs. 1 to 3. This indicates that the crate of Fig. 5 with the corner. pieces 24 and the stacking lugs 27 may be used either as a top stacking crate or as a bottom stacking crate since the bottom stacking ring structure on one crate will fit within the top frame of another crate, even though the lower crate is provided with the corner stacking lugs 27. As shown in Fig. 5 the top stacking lugs 27 of the lower crate do not interfere with the bottom stacking ring formation of a bottom stacking crate and at the same time, provide for the top stacking of crates with or without bottom stacking facilities. However, as previously sugg'ested, this important feature of the invention provides a crate which will accommodate itself to either bottom or to top stacking and thus serves admirably during a transition period when a dairy may be changing from manual casing procedure to automatic casing equipment, which latter requires the use of bottom stacking crates. When such conversion is completed, the cratesof Fig. 5 may be modified for bottom stacking only by the removal of the upstanding lugs 27, by cutting, burning, or any like process. The crate so modified is shown in Fig. 7.

A further modification of the crate shown in Figs. 1 to 3 may consist in using hairpin wires 29 such as shown in Figs. 8 to 10, instead of the individual vertical wires 5 shown in Figs. 1 to 7. The hairpin wires 29 simplify jigging. The upper curved portions 30 of the hairpin wires may be welded to the inner face of the top frame 1 with said curved top portions preferably below the top surfaces of the frame as shown in Figs. 8 and 9. If desired, however, the curved top portions 30 may be bent outwardly to lie beneath the upper frame 1 and welded thereto as shown in Fig. 10. In either form, the inside of the crate is free of objectionable protuberances which might injure or puncture the paper cartons of milk.

Having thus described the invention it is apparent that the case or crate is comprised of a minimum number of parts and that these parts are fashioned so as to be connected one with another by Welding with a minimum of jigging, and in a manner to remove substantially all danger of injurious contact between filled cartons and the component parts of the crate. Furthermore, the bottom of the case is constructed in a manner to insure a resilient support for the contents of the case thus to guard against injurious shock to the cartons after placement in the crate. Furthermore, the bottom edge portions of the containers are relieved from injurious contact with the inner surfaces of the side walls of the crate by reason of the outwardly flared portions which function also as bumpers or guards for the case and contents when in transit. The formation of the upper and lower terminal portions of the rod members which comprise the'sides of the case, to conform to the exterior surfaces of the upper and lower perimetric frame members and to the surface of the stacking ring strengthens the welded joints by which these elements are connected and the longitudinally-extending rib members on the under surface of the flat-topped bottom rods of the case not only rein-force these rods but enhance welding operations between them and the transverse rods which support them. Furthermore, the flat-topped bottom rods provide a substantially plane-supporting surface for sheet metal or plastic sheet bottom members to be used as inserts wit-bin the crate, when desired.

Furthermore, the crate of the persent invention embodiesi'einforcing corner means which define the vertical height of the crate and which may carry stacking lugs at the upper end to thereby render the crate suitable for either top stacking or bottom stacking. Additionally, the top stacking lugs may readily be removed at any time it is desired to convert the crate to a bottom stacking crate only.

It should be noted that the overall dimensions of the crate of the present invention are for the most part dictated by the dimensions of the cartons to be handled thereby. It is prevailing practice in the dairy industry to employ milk cartons which are generally square in cross section and for this reason the crate shown in the drawings is substantially square in over-all dimensions. This,

, however, is not a limiting factor and the crate can be made in any desired dimensions to correspond to the cartons to be handled. Furthermore, while the crate is illustrated as being made of wires or rods substantially circular in cross section, the component parts of the crate may have any desired cross-sectional contour.

It should be noted that while I have described a construction wherein the flat-topped rods 14 form the carton-contacting surface of the crate, other forms of carton-contacting bottom members may be utilized if desired, such as to provide sheet metal or plastic sheet carton-contacting bottom members. In such instances, the sheet members of metal or of plastic, perforated or not as desired, may be mounted upon the bottom-supporting wires 11 or on the transverse wires 13 in lieu of theflattopped rods 14, or the sheet metal members, or the plastic sheet member may be mounted upon the surface provided by theflat-topped rods 14.

Having thus described my invention it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made in the configuration and proportion of parts as described without departing from the spirit of the invention which is set forth more particularly in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A carrying case comprising side walls including upper and lower perimetric generally polygonal frame members surrounding the case in vertically spaced relation, at least one horizontal intermediate perimetric frame member disposed between the upper and lower perimetric frame members, a stacking ring disposed below the lower perimetric frame member and underlying the case, the transverse dimensions of the stacking ring being less than the corresponding transverse dimensions of said upper perimetric frame member, a plurality of perimetrically spaced vertical rods extending between and connected to the upper and the lower perimetric frame members and extending within and connected to said intermediate perimetric frame member, said vertical rods having lower terminal portions extending inwardly and downwardly around the lower perimetric frame member into engagement with the upper and inner surfaces of the stacking ring, means securing the vertical rods to the stacking ring along their engaging surfaces to maintain the stacking ring in downwardly and inwardly spaced relation to the lower perimetric frame member, plural spaced bottorn-supporting rods extending between and secured to opposite transverse portions of the stacking ring and case bottom means supported by said bottom-supporting rods, a reinforcing corner piece mounted at each end of the crate, the opposite ends of said corner pieces being provided with inwardly offset terminal portions defining oppositely facing seating shoulders engaging the top and the lower perimetric frame members respectively, and including angularly disposed side members defining an included angle within which the corners of the intermediate perimetric frame members are seated, and means securing the upper and the lower perimetric frame members to said corner pieces, the inwardly offset portions at the upper ends of the corner pieces contacting the under spasms E and inner surfaces of the upper perimetric frame rnember and terminating in upwardly directed stacking lugs projecting above the plane ofthe upper perimetric frame membe'rsand within the confines thereof.

2. A carrying case comprising side walls including upper and lower perimetric frame members surrounding the case in vertically spaced relation, a stacking ring disposed below the lower perimetric frame member and underlying the case, the transverse dimensions of the stacking ring being less than the corresponding transverse dimensions of said upper and lower perimetricframc members, a plurality of perimetrically spaced-side rods disposed within and extending between, and connected to the inner surfaces of the upper and lower perimetric frame members and having lower terminal portions engaged with and secured to the stacking ring along the contacting surfaces thereof in position to maintain the stacking ring in downwardly and inwardly spaced relation to the lower perimetric frame member, plural spaced bottom-supporting rods extending transversely between and secured at opposite terminal portions thereof to opposite transverse portions of the stacking ring, case bottom means supported by said bottom-supporting rods and including generally parallel spaced rod members supported upon and extending transversely of said bottom-supporting rods and plural spaced article-supporting rods supported upon and secured to the upper surfaces of said spaced rod members, said article-supporting rods being provided with generally flat upper surfaces jointly defining the article-supporting surface of said-.case'bottom,

the plane of said article-supporting surfacebeing disposedabove the plane of said lower perimetric frame memher, the respective perimetrically spaced rod members'being provided with laterally offset portions extending outwardly of the planes of the respective sides" of the case from points above the plane of the article-supporting surface of the case bottom downwardly to points substantial ly within the plane of the article-supporting surface of the case bottom, the lower terminal portions of the perimetrically spaced side rods being inclined inwardly and downwardly from the lower extremities of said outwardly offset portions thereof in a direction to dispose all portions thereof which lie above the plane of the article-supporting surface of the bottom of the case outwardly of the lines of intersection between the planes of the sides of the case andthe plane of the article-supporting surface of the case bottom whereby to maintain the interior of the case in the region of juncture between the sides and bottom thereof free of objectionable side wall protuberances.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,252,740 Thornblade Jan. 8, 1918 2,252,964 Faulkner Aug. 19, 1941 2,634,021 Celia Apr. 17, 1953 2,635,786 Wickson Aug. 21, 1953 2,752,062' Swingle June 26, 1956 2,802,589 Voight Aug. 13, 1957 2,853,202 Swingle Sept. 23, 1958 2,856,093 Bruce Oct. 14, 1 958 FOREIGN PATENTS 491,594 Italy Mar. 6, 1954 

